


Interstellar Cadets, The Untold Sequel

by ChildOfSolace



Category: Anastasia (1997), How to Train Your Dragon (Movies), Rise of the Guardians (2012), Treasure Planet (2002)
Genre: Bullying, Established Relationship, F/F, F/M, M/M, Revenge, Weddings, school days
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-28
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-01-07 04:47:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21209690
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChildOfSolace/pseuds/ChildOfSolace
Summary: Sequel toTreasure Plantet, Retold





	1. Background of Treasure Planet 2

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SnowFlakeWrites](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SnowFlakeWrites/gifts).
**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those who weren't in the know

According to an article by Animated Views, it would have involved Jim Hawkins going to the Royal Interstellar Academy where he is described as being a bit of a "hot-shot", in contrast to his smart classmate and eventual love interest, Kate. Captain Amelia is the dean of the academy and has a brand new vessel designed by Doctor Delbert: The Centurion. The new vessel is designed to be the fastest ship in the galaxy and has B.E.N. as the pilot of the ship.

Soon, Jim and Kate face their new enemy, Ironbeard, who has a desire to take control of the ship. Ironbeard and his gang of pirates then hijack the ship, forcing Jim and Kate to escape the ship and find help from a pirate who can stop Ironbeard. Jim then finds help from his old friend Long John Silver at the Lagoon Nebula as they plan to sneak on board of the ship and gain back control of the Centurion. However, Silver also has desires of controlling the ship himself and wants Jim to join him, which horrifies Kate and the three find out that Ironbeard is using the Centurion for his own villainous gains, which includes disabling Botany Bay Prison Asteroid's security system to allow alerted prisoners to join the ship. Ironbeard also damages Silver's ship to prevent the three from catching up to him.

Jim, Kate, and Silver soon reconcile with one another and Silver reveals that he has smuggled a ton of weapons that can help destroy the Centurion. With the three now working together and fixing Silver's ship, Silver is soon forced to destroy the Centurion and kill all of Ironbeard's crew on the ship. The film would then end with Silver parting ways again with Jim and Kate, and the two graduating from the Royal Interstellar Academy a few years later with honors, while Silver's shadow is secretly smiling at their accomplishments.

**───────────────────────────────────**

**My note: **I'm gonna use this as a basis for this story, but obviously, make it my own with some changes. I hope you'll enjoy it. I will definitely enjoy writing it, anyway.


	2. Prelude

**"If anyone told me about a year ago I would be attending military school, of all things, after years of forgery and hustling," Dimitri started, as Jim looked himself up at the full-body mirror while applying hair gel. "I'd think they had a gallon of wine too many."**

**Jim narrowed his eyes, shaking his head. "If you had that much, dimwit," he drawled. "You'd be dead."**

**"There were a lot of times in my life, after meeting Drago, I wanted to be dead," Dimitri admitted, turning away from the mirror and walking towards Jim. "Give it another month, and I probably would've done something about it... Except for that time, we crossed paths once more... And I swear, if that isn't Valhalla-sent, I don't know what is."**

**Dimitri was always the more affectionate, albeit shameless, party of their relationship. He mouthed out endearments and or sappy sentiments more times than Silver had to Sarah in the course of courtship to marriage. Jim, in a bout of embarrassment mixed with heart-fluttering butterflies at the pit of his stomach, always responded by either smacking or kicking the older man before walking off.**

**Except for rare occasions.**

**"Did you have another nightmare?" Jim frowned, reaching up to caress Dimitri's cheeks in a rare display of affectionate comfort. "Drago's dead, we saw to that. He can't hurt you anymore."**

**Dimitri sighed, pressing the palms of his hands over those that held his face. "It... wasn't Drago... this time. I..." he hesitated. "It was... You."**

**Jim flinched, staring at Dimitri in bafflement.**

**"I dreamt that... I lost you. To some unknown darkness... Jim, I can't. Just the thought..."**

**Jim squeezes Dimitri's face to the point the man had fish lips. "Shut it, dimwit." He scoffed before planting a chaste kiss on the other's lips. "I'm still here, aren't I? It's a nightmare, that's all."**

**The older man beamed, embracing his boyfriend tightly, always cherishing the moments Jim initiated displays of love and affection.**

**"Anyway, enough of this sentimental prattle," Dimitri cleared his throat, purposely ignoring Jim's '_You started it_' as he pulled away and picked up his blazer and made to put it on. "Ready for our first day as official space cadets?"**

**Jim snorted, smirking at his boyfriend. "We just lived through an intergalactic voyage to Treasure Planet, with just about a dozen close calls." He snorted. "Compared to that, this is gonna be a breeze."**


	3. Unexpected Assignment

After the events of the Treasure Planet expedition, life for the Hawkins and those resumed in relative peace.

B.E.N. and Dimitri's addition were a big help that Sarah and Silver allowed themselves occasional day offs. Due to the fact that only First Years were given the option to return to their personal homes during the weekend, as the following years would require them to stay within the Academy until graduation, Jim and Dimitri made it a point to take advantage of the option. Whenever the boys came home for the weekend from the Academy, the couple would spend the first day with their child, and while they managed the Inn with B.E.N., Sarah and Silver would go on leisure dates to relieve their stress.

Of course, the peace was relative for a reason.

Because of their past experience in space voyage, Jim and Dimitri gained instant popularity at the start of their first year. This instigated some spark of envy and jealousy, however, from cadets in the higher level, who worked hard on their reputation. With Jim's short temper, it was all Dimitri could do to smooth talk their way out of making a scene.

"I don't understand why you're not any more upset than me," Jim huffed irritably, "They outright mock you on a daily basis."

Dimitri shrugged, wiping off the last derogatory word defaced on his suitcase. "Yeah, yeah, Dimitri; the cadet that came from a life of conning and hustling people, served house arrest in the process, how on earth are we supposed to trust such a guy? It could just be another hustle." He drawled, "Honestly, they could say all that over and over, and then some... But I really could care less. Your opinion is the only one that matters to me. And you know better; that's enough for me."

"Great, now I feel petty." Jim pouted, as his boyfriend simply laughed, affectionately pinching him on the cheek before climbing down the carriage. "Stop being sappy; I'm upset."

Dimitri grinned, holding his hand out. "And you're still very adorable when you are." He said, "Now come on, cheer up. Smile. If you don't, Sarah's gonna know what's up as soon as she gets a look at your salty face."

"Odin, you're right." Jim groaned, absently taking Dimitri's hand and climbing down himself. "How am even supposed to—"

"Got you covered." Dimitri interrupted, leaning down to give him a kiss. Jim hummed into it, instinctively reaching up to place his hands on the crooks of his neck. Half-heartedly, Dimitri pulled back and said, "They're the petty ones, though. Jealous idiots, cause they know as I do you're gonna best them all, and you also have a hot boyfriend to boot."

Jim rolled his eyes, but couldn't help the grin on his face. "Oh, so I get the cuddly label. But you give yourself 'hot'." He shook his head. "Well, you're right about 'boyfriend to boot' part. Come on, let's head inside." He took Dimitri's hand and started down on the path to the Benbow inn.

When they neared the inn, Jim frowned and noted the fancy carriage parked at their stables. The fanciest thing they've ever got in there was Hiccup's carriage, with Toothless pulling it along. But that didn't compare to this wooden ivory, lined with gold. Instead of a dragon, two Aero Equus steads were attached to its harness. Jim shared a confused expression with Dimitri, who simply shrugged. They headed towards the main entrance, and Jim twisted the knob.

But it was locked.

"What?" Jim's frown deepened. "that's strange, it isn't anywhere near closing time..."

Dimitri took the safety of his pistol, but have yet to take it from the holster. "Might as well be prepared."

"I wish I could scold you for being paranoid," Jim sighed, doing the same preparation. "Ready?" Dimitri nodded, and Jim knocked on the door one more time. "Mom? Pops? Uh, B.E.N.?" He called out tentatively, "It's me, Jim; open up!"

Dimitri flinched a bit when they heard the sounds of cogs turning, and he inched his pistol off the holster slightly when the door opened, only to reveal Silver with an odd expression, he was smiling but there was a hint of worry at the way the corner of his mouth twitched.

"Jimbo, Dimitri, welcome back. We've been waiting," He said, his tone seemed to be lacking his usual mirth. "Come right in."

Jim frowned, raising a brow about the subtle way of being given permission to his own home. When he and Dimitri passed the door frame, at the den, they see the robot cops that used to give Jim such a hard time flanking a well-dressed woman; an elderly. Sarah came by with a tray of snacks and refreshments, carefully setting them down on the table. B.E.N. was at the mess hall of the Inn, tinkering at the panel installed for the purpose of presenting a holographic menu, sometime Jim and Hiccup had worked on earlier before the Inn's relaunch of service. Upon seeing them, Pooka flew over to them, making happy noises, seeming to be the only levity in the otherwise somber atmosphere. Dimitri patted his pet absently in greeting, but remained quiet otherwise.

"Whatever it is," Jim said, a little bit of a strain in his voice, "I didn't do it."

Dimitri raised a brow, staring at his boyfriend. "What in the worlds do you think they're here to accuse you for?"

"Force of habit; these guys always love giving me a hard time," Jim shrugged dismissively, "No offense."

The robot cops chimed in together, "None taken, Cadet Hawkins." Then, one of them continued, "However, you are not in any trouble... yet."

"Now what does that mean?"

Suddenly, a new voice joined the gathering. "It means that we have an assignment for you two,"

Jim and Dimitri turned to see two large man step out from the foyer of the rest rooms. The owner of the voice who spoke was an immense man; tall, buff, and a little rotund. He had bright blue eyes, thick black eyebrows, and a long white beard and mustache. He wore a black fur hat, a long red coat with black fur trim, and a red plaid shirt. He carried two swords strapped to his waist.

"Let me introduce myself, I'm commander Nicholas North Clausen. You know my men, Jack and Aster." He smiled benevolently, "I wish we could meet under better circumstances." 

Jim and Dimitri didn't know what to say to that, simply nodding their heads, turning to the other man beside him that looked like some kind of humanesque alien with lion features; round ears, a flat nose, and sharp canines amongst an almost equally sharp set of teeth. Almost similar to Jack's attire from their Treasure Planet voyage, the man wore a captain's uniform with bristles adorned on the shoulder pads. The fancy cords that were to secure the middle of the suit were undone, and while it was a fancy get up, it seemed ruffled up. Similarly, the elderly seated at their den with Sarah also seemed slightly sullied. 

"This is admiral Blake," North continued, "I think he's best suited to explain the situation to you."

The admiral walked up to them, holding out his paw, and both boys complied with a handshake. "Pleasure to meet you, lads." He released Dimitri's hand, before tugging at the lapels of his suit. "I'll cut to the chase. I understand that the situation is rather unorthodox, but lady Marie Romanov has a task for you."

"That, I do." The aforementioned woman spoke, "Coming here alone, there was an attempt at my life, as well as my grand daughter's. I believed it to be an assassination attempt. Until the investigation is completed to confirm whether or not this is so, I require a covert body guard for her."

Jim and Dimitri shared a look of confusion. "Um, with all due respect," Dimitri ventured, "why us? I mean, as flattering as it is to be requested for, we're still cadets."

"I'll explain the rest of the plan in detail, should you choose to accept." North interjected. "of course, I highly recommend that you do."

Marie waved a frail finger towards Dimitri, and said, "After all, you saved my grand daughter once." She smiled, "and due to the circumstances, she has expectations that you do it again, as you always have."

"Save your..." Dimitri echoed, brows furrowed in deepened confusion. "I'm not sure I understand what..."

"Dimitri?" Everyone looked up to the steps, where a lovely young woman stood, her hair tousled messily, possibly from previously lying down on bed, but that did not take away her beauty. All the more when a bright smile shone on her face, "Oh, thank goodness! I thought they got to you, too!"

Dimitri blinked as the woman ran down the steps and practically threw herself in his arms. He yelped at the impact, holding on to her firmly less she stumbles down on the floor. Jim frown, disliking the odd feeling settling on the pit of his stomach. A feeling that worsened when the woman held Dimitri's face and pulled him in for a kiss. Dimitri widened his eyes, and Jim froze at the sight. Pooka, sensing his mood, rubbed herself at his cheek in an attempt of comfort. Sarah sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose and Silver coughed awkwardly at her side.

B.E.N. glanced over, seeming to cringe, and tried to keep busy with his tinkering.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let it be know, I love the movie Anastasia, and have nothing against her at all.
> 
> But since she's the obvious choice for a rival, well, this happened. Prepare for some OOC, then again, I guess most fanfictions are all about OOC hahaha.


	4. Reluctant bodyguards

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _An unwanted arrangment_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Read more here [**confabulation** ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confabulation)

As it turned out, the aforementioned attack on the dowager duchess Marie and grand daughter duchess Anastasia, the latter suffered from a special kind of amnesia, wherein her memories are rendered faulty. It was different from the amnesia that B.E.N. sustained, being a robot and having his mind chip taken from him forcefully. As a result of trauma from the experience of being attacked and almost murdered, plus a rather rough bump on the head, Anastasia seemed to have most of her memories fabricated.

The things that she remembered which were true were her name, what had happened to her immediate family, and that she knew Dimitri. But that's also where the faultiness started. Dimitri discovered that he had met her once, in his earlier years being coerced into working for Drago. It was chance encounter where the vile man had kidnapped her for ransom shortly before the assassination of her immediate family. Dimitri and Dagur stood as her wardens, but as soon as his companion doze off, Dimitri had released Anastasia.

He had meant to escape along with her, but the rest of the crew caught sight of their escape. She was injured, so there was no hope that they could make a speedy escape. As a last ditch of effort to save at least one of them, Dimitri told her to hide behind some barrels while he led Eret and the twins off course. It meant him returning to Drago, and earning twenty lashes while Eret and Dagur held him down. But at the next day, Anastasia was found safe with her family and Drago's crew to lie low for an indefinite time.

"So, what you're saying is," Jim started slowly, glancing towards the mess hall where Dimitri was sharing afternoon tea and cookies with Anastasia and Marie. He frowned, turning back to Blake and North reluctantly. "from the time Dimitri saved her, she's always been grateful but regretted never thanking him properly. Now, after this incident, she '_remembers_' that Dimitri was able to escape with her, taken into her family even, and they're... they're..." He couldn't say it.

Blake finished promptly, "... betrothed, yes. Intended to each other, if you will." He said. "the doctors said it's a mild case, however. Temporary. So anytime, and with the right intake of medications, lady Anastasia will slowly regain her original memories."

"Till then, we have something arranged with the Academy." North continued, "we acknowledge the importance of the continuity of your training. Lady Anastasia will attend the Academy with you, as another cadet, to keep her hidden from those who allegedly attempted to assassinate her. She knows of the situation, and won't expect special treatment. Only a select and most trusted individuals from the Academy will know of the real nature of her being there, Jack being one of them since he's the headmaster," He said. "But it will fall upon you, and your partner, that she stays out of trouble and won't draw attention to herself."

Jim nodded, slowly coming to understand the situation. But it didn't ease the persistent and uncomfortable feeling at his gut. He stiffened at Anastasia's giggle, and when he dared look, she was feeding Dimitri a cookie, and some crumbs remained caught at the corners of his mouth. She reached up to pat them away affectionately. He quickly looked away.

"This is just silly," Sarah huffed in frustration, quite sensitive and aware about how her son was taking this, "it's better to just explain things to her; have the facts straightened out. It's one thing to push a dangerous assignment to these boys barely finish with their military training, but now you want to insist that they compromise their emotions and relationship for the sake of some...."

North held his hands out to placate the woman's frustration, "I understand your concerns, and yes, I concede that they're valid. And the doctors did suggest that someone close to her could try explaining which of her memories were real, and call her out on the faulty ones." he started, "However, when lady Marie tried to explain that Dimitri was never found with her, her grand daughter almost went hysteric. The dowager duchess remained calm, and passed it off as a joke. After that, it's been decided that they just let the memories resurface on their own; not forcing them out."

"Okay, fine. I'll let this play out," Jim sighed, running a hand through his hair. Then, he glared at Blake and North. "But for the record, so long as she's not around, he's still my boyfriend. That said, I'm drawing a line with them sharing a room together, faux engagement or not."

North and Blake shared a look; the admiral ventured. "That sounds fair."

───────

This wasn't Jim's ideal weekend away from the Academy. It was supposed to be a time to wind down and relax; bond with his family and boyfriend. But Dimitri's time was monopolized by Anastasia, who would be joining them in their return to the academy. Once there, she would share a dormitory with Admiral Blake's daughter, their classmate, Kate Blake. Marie was content, staying in the booked V.I.P. suite. Unlike Anastasia, her personal body guard would be the Admiral, and he would escort her back to Crescentia in another secured establishment.

The preferred plan was that Anastasia would simply share Jim and Dimitri's dorm room with them, but the fact that the academy had a strict policy about same gender roommates, it was impossible to give the special treatment without the questions raised. For that, Jim was thankful. Even if he and Dimitri almost weren't allowed to be roommates themselves, considering the nature of their relationship. Jack allowed it, being the headmaster. He promised Sarah, however, that he would personally be checking up on Jim and Dimitri from time to time.

"Oh, how's your uncle Vlad?" Anastasia asked, "It's been awhile. I think the last time I saw him was when we helped him propose to lady Sophie."

Dimitri stared at her blankly, lost for her words. "I, uh..."

"Ah, don't tell me you forgot about him, too." Anastasia frowned, patting the man's hand comfortingly. "what happened to you, Dimitri? It seemed that you've lost more memories than me; the only thing I've forgotten were my family's name, but they came back to me after a few hours."

Dimitri chuckled weakly, "It was, uh, a rather traumatic experience." He said, "I rather not talk about it."

"Well, if you say so. But don't worry, we'll get through this together." She hugged him once more.

Jim rolled his eyes, turning his attention back to the batter he was mixing.

"You know," Sarah ventured gently, "I know we have to go through this charade for awhile, but you could join them."

Silver nodded, leaning on the counter. "She's right, lad. That's your beau in there," he said. "ya may not be able to tell the little lady about the real situation, but she ain't gonna fault ya for taking his attention; just pretend ya best mates, lookin' for time to while away ya weekend off the academy."

"Dimitri and I are best mates, and more." Jim huffed, pouring the batter into dragon moldings. "And I'm not going to pretend we're anything less than that."

Sarah and Silver shared a look, before the woman placed a hand over her son's. "Well then," she said, "you're more than welcome to spend your time with us. When the cookies are done, we could spend have a picnic out in the courtyard, near the pavilion for supper."

Jim smiled a bit.

A picnic for supper with his parents had been wonderful. It touched Jim that they had skipped their date night for it and it was nice to bond with his parents again. Though it didn't really help him feel any less sick in the stomach, having to watch some highborn lady ogle his man, his parents didn't have to know.

Saying good night to Anastasia, Dimitri quickly left the room and rushed down the hall. He took the the flight of stairs to the next floor, where the Hawkins family quarters were, and as soon as he reached Jim's room, he knocked on the door insistently. As soon as the door opened, the apology on his lips were never said, for Jim had grabbed the front of Dimitri's shirt. Dimitri yelped as he was pushed onto the bed, and Jim hopped on, straddling him.

"When all this is over," Jim huffed irritably, "you better hold me back, because nothing else is going to stop me from going off on that wench."

Dimitri looked sheepish, rubbing at his neck awkwardly. "Um, it's not really her fault that she..."

"Gods, dimwit, you better not be defending her."

He yelped, "I'm not, I'm not!" Dimitri held up his hands as if in surrender. "Just... Pointing out a technicality... Wait. Just realized another one, " he suddenly smirked, pointing at Jim. "You're jealous, aren't you?"

"Pfft, yeah right." Jim rolled his eyes, "No. I'm just friggin pissed that some random broad had you babysit her when we had very specific plans for today."

Dimitri snickered. "Sorry, my mind just stopped processing stuff after 'yeah right'. You're jealous, pup." He insisted. "Admit it."

"Oh yeah? And what are you gonna do if I did?"

Dimitri's smirk softened, and he reached up to caress Jim's face. "Well, for starters, I'd remind you that you have nothing to worry about."

"Mhmm..."

"And that's because..." Dimitri drawled, resting his cheek against the younger man's neck. "You'll always... _always._... Be the only one I want. I love you, Jim." He gently nipped on the pierced ear and tugged on it lightly.

Jim shivered, and wrapped his arms around his lover's shoulders.

A knock came to the door. "Dimitri?"

Jim growled as he detached his arms and fell heavily back to the bed. Dimitri winced and sighed, raising himself up to answer the door.

"Hey, uh, you're still up." He said lamely, "uh, can't sleep? You could ask B.E.N. to make you some warm milk."

Anastasia smiled, shaking her head. "No, no, it's not that." She said. "I was just thinking, since we're betrothed anyway you could sleep with me in my room."

Jim made an indignant sound, and Dimitri had to cough to muffle it. After coming up with an excuse, about needing to discuss some confidential preparations regarding the incognito operation with 'cadet Hawkins' for tomorrow and not wanting to bore her with it, the man sent her off.

He walked back to the bed where Jim sat, with his famous death glare and arms crossed sourly.

"So, uh," Dimitri started awkwardly, "I think we were about to cuddle and..."

"Mood's gone." Jim interrupted, turning to the other side and his back was to Dimitri as he laid back down. "Lights off, 'cadet'."

Dimitri's shoulders sag. "Yeah, that..." He sighed, "that's what I thought too..."


	5. The Northwind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiccup presents Jack with a ship

Jim had woken up first before Dimitri and as an apology for his behavior the night before, he made him breakfast. Technically, his mother made the main course which were pancakes but Jim prepared his coffee just the way his lover liked it and a french toast to go with it. He knew it wasn't Dimitri's fault he had some stranger lady vying for his affections and that he couldn't come clean about the nature of their own relationship. Dimitri didn't hold it against him, but that didn't mean Jim didn't. And after mulling over it, he knew that Dimitri didn't choose to be place in this situation but he did choose Jim; and that was what mattered.

"Oh, good morning darling!"

Though, that also didn't mean he hated Anastasia any less. Jim sighed as the doorbell rang and as his parents were getting ready to put up shop while B.E.N. was in the kitchen it fell on Jim to answer it. He went over to open the door to reveal an excited Hiccup.

Hiccup was grinning ear to ear, and took hold of both Jim's shoulders. "It's done!" He exclaimed.

"What?" Jim blinked, confused for a moment before it dawned to him. "No way, you're serious?!"

A few weeks back just before Jim and Dimitri started the school year, Hiccup had come to the young Hawkins for assistant help in designing a new ship schematics. After which, he presented them to someone back in Crescentia and paid the sum to have it built so he can present it to Jack as a gift to celebrate their one year together.

"Yeah. I'm going over to see him now," Hiccup told him with a smirk, "and I was looking for some sailors to help me pilot it there." He said leadingly.

Jim stared at the explorer owlishly before gasping, "You mean it?"

"Just remember it's meant for Jack, " Hiccup laughed at his enthusiasm. "so no crashing into things." 

Jim scoffed, waving a dismissive hand. "You're talking to the guy who hotwired an ancient ship filled with gold." He said. "More faith on me, aye?"

"Didn't you say that's the same ship you were using to escape that exploded to smithereens?"

Jim scowled, "That had nothing to do with my skills." He pointed out. "now are we going or what?"

"Might need to call B.E.N. too to help with the controls below deck. And we need someone to help with the sails," Hiccup leaned to the side to call out, "Dimitri, you in?"

Dimitri didn't even hesitate, "Yes!" He said eagerly, before looking back to the duchess. "You'll be safe here, just stay indoors. Admiral Blake will be around with the uniform you'll wear in the Academy and relay a summary of information we got from first day orientation."

"Can't I just come along?" Anastasia frowned, "that sounds like a more exciting way to spend time."

An elderly voice answered for Dimitri. "That won't be possible, my dear." Marie told her, coming down the stairs. "Remember you're here to be protected, not to frolick about with Dimitri. At least, not until these Neanderthals are apprehended."

"Well, that's that then." Dimitri grinned, nodding to Marie in thanks. She smiled back. "C'mon Jim, let's get going."

Jim did his best to be subtle in his smug smirk. "Mom, we'll be out with Hiccup for the day!" He called out as he rushed up the steps to dress in something more decent going out. "Want us to pick anything up on the way back?"

"Pup, grab my coat too, would you?" Dimitri called out.

Anatasia made a face, "What did you call him?"

"Oh," Dimitri stiffened, thinking carefully how to answer that question. "Uh, it's just a... nickname, you know. No big deal."

The young duchess frowned, crossing her arms. "I suppose." she muttered, "except it's been awhile since you've called me that way."

"Huh?" Dimitri blinked, "what, pup?"

Anastasia rolled her eyes, but couldn't help a giggle. "No, silly. Anya." She said. "You've sure lost a lot of memories since the incident; even more so than I did." She mused.

Dimitri had no idea how to respond to that. The irony of the statement was definitely not lost to him. He was thankful when Jim came back down and dragged him out before she could find his lack of response awkward. At the worse, suspicious. He had no idea how long he could keep this facade up but he hope he didn't really have to for long.

**───────**

Jack was just leaving North's office with the documents regarding Anastasia's incognito stay in the Academy. He definitely didn't expect to see Hiccup waiting for him outside. It was a surprise, but definitely a pleasant one. The academy headmaster grinned.

"Well Hic, I didn't expect to see you here." He mused, walking towards him. "miss me already, babe?"

Hiccup simply smiled in response, leaning closer to give his lover a light peck on the lips. "That, and maybe I just wanted to give my favorite snowflake a little present." He said before gesturing towards the incoming ship that Jack just noticed then.

The head master widened his eyes, mouth popping open in surprise with Dimitri managing the shrouds that he could and... Aster? Well, that would explain why he wasn't in the meeting earlier. Jack turned to his lover, "Okay, I don't know if it's some Viking thing or whatever findings you've unearthed in the past," He started, "But I don't think this warrants as a '_LITTLE_' present, Hic."

"Maybe it is, compared to what's actually coming." Hiccup grinned, before getting down on his knees. Jack froze, his eyes widening even more, pale cheeks turning red as the man takes his hand. "I know we barely knew each other for more than a year, but I do know that there's no one else I rather be with and I don't want to waste a moment, so will─"

Jack pounced, and wrapped his arms around the brunette's neck. "YES!"

"Jack," Hiccup laughed, steadying himself and wrapping his arms around the head master's waist before standing. "You could've waited for me to finish the question."

The white haired man simply smirked, leaning away a bit to poke the button nose. "You said that you didn't want to waste time." He laughed gleefully before squeezing Hiccup's cheeks before bringing their lips together.

"Okay, wait what?" Jim blinked, before scrunching up his nose. "Did he just... Was this really a proposal gimmick?"

Aster seemed to be timing something in his watch, before saying, "A'ight, that's the ten seconds allowance." The bunny-man jumped off the edge and scaled down the ship. "THE HELL DIDN'T YOU ASK MA BLESSIN' FIRST, YA BLOODY─"

"Heh, you go Aster." Dimitri laughed, shaking his head. "Well, don't know if I'm that surprise to be honest. Makes sense he didn't really let us in on the plan; bet you wouldn't help otherwise."

"I would!" Jim protested indignantly. "And I would also know when to look away!"

After a moment, with Jack making sure Aster doesn't kill his now fiancé, they boarded the ship where B.E.N. brought up some celebratory wine with bread and a cheese plate, along with some frosted cookies. Because Jack loves those. The robot mentioned he needed to check some kind of anomaly the radar showed him, to make sure there wasn't any glitch or loose wires so he left after making sure the food was okay and everyone was seated.

"You better give me a tour of this ship, seeing as I'm captain of it." Jack said as he fed the brunette a piece of cheese. "What name did you give it, by the way?"

Hiccup shrugged, "I thought you'd want to name it. I have some resources left to put a name or logo, if that's what you want." He said. "Thought it's only right for the actual captain to name it."

"Northwind." Jack immediately decided without preamble. "It's the most obedient one and answered my call the first time I worked on the winds. First time I tried to fly on my own, it made sure to save me the last minute before I actually landed hard on the snow while the others just ignored my commands."

Hiccup stared at him, still not entirely used to his lover talking about winds or that it mattered that there were different types of winds.

"Crikey, I hope ya at least take time to think when ya name any kid you get." Aster snorted, "That said, Northwind ain't half bad a name."

Jack looked at him, "Could you afford a compliment that doesn't sound like a roundabout?"

"Hmm, when it comes to ya... Nah."

The white haired man sighed, shaking his head.

"So," Dimitri started, pouring himself a glass. "any preference for the date?"

Aster huffed, "I got one; soon as the tsar disapproves of it, death sentence is at dawn." He said, taking a piece of cheese while still glaring at Hiccup.

"Uh, I actually─" Hiccup started nervously, "His greatness didn't seem to oppose..."

"WHAT"

Jack rolled his eyes, throwing a piece of bread at him. "Jeez Aster, I'm not an eighteen year old star child anymore." He shook his head, "And you're acting as if I hadn't talked to you about the possibility of this actually happening."

"Fine," Aster sighed, before pointing the bread thrown at him to Hiccup warningly. "Ya just remember, if ya so much as hurt him by bein' a cheat or what have ya, I'm licensed to kill."

Jack sighed, holding a palm to his head. "You paranoid kangaroo, you worry too much." He beamed at Hiccup. "But yeah, and I'm licensed to kill too." He smiled sweetly.

"Er, duly noted." The brunette made a look, turning towards Jim. "uh, does graduating a soldier give you license to self defense kill?"

Jim narrowed his eyes, "You're not even married yet, and you're already considering marticide. What in Valhalla is wrong with you?" He deadpanned.

"Actually, if ya got to the point with your own mate here," Aster gestured lazily at Dimitri. "I wager a butt load of doubloons ya'd be considering that everyday the way you two go on."

Jim turned red, "HEY!" Then he really considered it, looking at Dimitri. "Hm, yeah, maybe you'd win that wager."

"Jim!" Dimitri sighed in exasperation, "sometimes I wonder if you do like me."

Everyone on the table laughed. And eventually, so did the two young cadets.

"Jimmy!" B.E.N. came back running to the group, "I've checked all the wires and controls, but the unidentified frequency the radar is detecting isn't going away. Maybe you should have a look too?"

Jim frowned. He checked everything before they started sailing it out from the building it was hidden in so this was rather odd. As soon as he stood up from the table, he barely had a moment to think before instinctively hitting the deck as a dark, shifty silhouette charged towards the ship. It toppled over the table, and he sees the others had scrambled to get out of the way, too. Arms were around his shoulders, and he sees Dimitri helping him back up.

"Are you okay?"

Jim shook his head, "Nevermind me, what was that?!" He scanned the deck till his eyes locked on a dark creature, and upon closer inspection he can see that it looked like a horse. While he scrutinized the creature, it didn't seem to be looking at him as it was getting reading to charge a chosen target. "HICCUP, LOOKOUT!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay folks, just a heads up, I started working from home and internet connection is rather slow due to that and priorities so updates would come in more sparsely. 
> 
> Remember though, 
> 
> I have so many fics 😅😅
> 
> So I'll be jumping a lot on them. If you want this fic in particular to be updated soon, drop a comment if you will 😁😁


	6. Unsettling Encounters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Mysterious foe

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Work from home without AC is exhausting. 😅😅
> 
> If you want this or other series or oneshots in particular to be updated soon, drop a comment if you will 😁😁
> 
> Please and thank you ❤❤

Hiccup responded to the urgency of Jim's tone, and sees the incoming creature. He deftly dodged the assault, the horse missing by a hair.

"No one messes with my future husband!"

Jack pulled his staff out from nowhere and started to zap the assailant with sharp spikes of ice, which prompted the creature to dissolve into the deck floors covering it with a dark shade. Alert, the occupants of the ship steadied their stance as they remained watchful, waiting for the dark creature to reform.

And reformed, it did. It seemed a little annoyed. It made an outraged cry, and blast of a dark essence of sorts spreads across the deck floor. The group had no choice but to split up. Soon as they did, the creature charging in towards Hiccup once more.

Prepared this time, Hiccup pulled out his sword and a pillar of fire shot out from it. When the horse got within reach, he slashed at it towards the head. Everybody winced at the piercing cry, covering their ears. But the creature reformed quickly enough. This time, however, it was more disoriented.

It didn't continue the attack on the explorer, even when he was right there. Its beady eyes locked on Jim instead and it charged towards him. Still recovering from the noise earlier, Jim could hardly react in time when the creature crashed into him.

"Jim, no!"

Instead of feeling pain however, Jim's body felt light yet cold at the same time. He was starting to feel an odd sense of emptiness, and it frightened him. If he was more aware of what was happening, he would realize that his entire body was flickering. The creature itself was fading away, and the young cadet felt himself losing consciousness.

From thin air, Jack seemed to have appeared right above the two and swept in, taking Jim into his arm. He pressed him tightly against his one side with surprising strength, and used his other hand to launching another icy attack towards the creature.

Just as it disappeared to the ground.

Nobody released their breaths, nobody dropped their guard for a full minute. Until B.E.N. broke the silence first, staring at Jack in wonder.

"I didn't know you could go invisible."

Jack smirked, looking at the robot. "Yeah," He started, floating back down and giving Jim to a worried Dimitri. "it's something I've been working on recently. In fact, it's actually the first time I─"

"Is this really the time for that?" Dimitri interrupted, narrowing his eyes. He was done checking on Jim, who had started to regain his control over himself as soon as their headmaster had rescued him. "Shouldn't we be more concerned about that thing that just attacked us?"

Aster nodded, "Aye, what the bloody hell was that bitzer?" he bent down, touching the remnants of black sand left behind. "I thought Sanderson was the only one capable of pulling off this kind of magic."

Jim was holding on to the arms around him, still reeling from what he'd just experienced. "Who's Sanderson?"

"He was a member of the militia Aster and I belong to. But he was slain at the last battle against the Nightmare forces." Jack answered somberly, resting his staff on his shoulder. "As far as I know, he's the only one who specializes in magic that can create sand creatures like the one we just fought." He said, then started to frown. "But Sandy's had a more golden, light color to his magic. When he fought, the allies fighting alongside him were inspired with a pleasant feeling of determination to fulfill their goals."

The young cadet snorted, "Well, that's definitely not the feeling I felt." He said, "It was... Terrifying." He shuddered once more.

Dimitri frowned, tightening his hold around the shorter boy. He knew Jim to be the type to never display his weakness, never mind actually admitting it outright.

"I got a bad feeling 'bout this, Snowflake." Aster frowned, twirling a boomerang as a nervous tick of sorts. "Possibly the type big red guy feels in his gut when things are awry."

Jack sighed, crossing his arms. "Guess we're going to have postpone this engagement celebration." He said.

"Considering the circumstances, I'd say it's fair." Hiccup shrugged, clicking off the fire and sheathing his sword. "I'll head back to the manor. There might be something in my old books about whatever it is we just saw."

Jack grimaced, looking concerned. "All right, you do that. But you're staying at my place... Indefinitely." He said.

"What? Why?"

"Well, first off, you're my fiancé now so it would be okay to live together. Probably should've been done earlier if not for a certain stick in the muck." Jack started, earning an indignant cry from his Star brother. "Second, I'm not the only one who could've noticed that this creature seemed to be targeting you."

"I wish there was a way to argue with the living together arrangement." Aster sighed, "But he's got a point."

"Why would I be a target of some dark horse thing?" Hiccup made a look. "I'm just an Explorer. And I haven't had enemies since I discovered artifacts from the El Dorado civilization."

"I guess that's one of the things that needs to be found out, seems like it only went for Jim when your attack shook it up a bit." Jack pointed out, "And until we figure out what's going on, you're not going to be let out of my sight. I'm not being widowed before the wedding."

B.E.N. scratched his head. Why a robot has to do such an act is unexplainable. "Don't you have to be married first before you could be considered a widow in the event your partner is deceased?"

"You get the idea." Jack rolled his eyes. "Now to clean up this mess." He snapped his fingers, and the winds went about cleaning up the sand scattered across the deck. He created an ice vessel with his magic and willed the winds to bring the particles inside. "Now we've got some evidence to report back with."

Aster whistled, "Gotta say, I'm impressed you thought about that." He said.

"Consider it my contribution to the paperwork."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At this point, I'm just updating much as I can no matter how short or whatever cause i might lose the inspiration again cause I'm encouraged and inspired every time I update a chapter


End file.
